ICC removes prosecutor Karim Khan

What's happened

The Assembly of States Parties has voted to remove Karim Khan as the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor after an inquiry found he committed "serious misconduct and serious breach of duty" over allegations of a sexual relationship with a junior staffer. Khan has denied the claims. The secret ballot passed with 82 of 125 votes; Venezuela has announced withdrawal from the court.

What's behind the headline?

What happened and why it matters

• The Assembly of States Parties has voted to remove Karim Khan, the first time a sitting ICC prosecutor has been ousted. The vote followed findings by the courts oversight body that Khan committed "serious misconduct and serious breach of duty" related to a sexual relationship with a junior ICC lawyer. Khan denies the allegations.

Institutional consequences

• The removal will immediately trigger an election process to pick a new prosecutor and will leave the ICC without its sitting chief while multiple high‑profile probes continue. Active arrest warrants issued under Khan remain in place because only ICC judges can withdraw them. The court will therefore continue to pursue cases begun under his tenure while it recruits leadership.

Political fallout

• The decision arrives while the ICC is under intense external pressure. The United States has imposed sanctions on Khan and other ICC staff and is pursuing a diplomatic campaign to weaken the court. Venezuela has responded to the removal by notifying the UN of its decision to withdraw from the ICC. Expect more political moves from states that see the court as partisan.

Credibility and staff morale

• The process has fractured support inside and outside the ICC. Some staff and human rights groups have accused the executive committee of politicising the disciplinary process; others say the evidence and oversight findings justified action. That split will make it harder for the new prosecutor to quickly restore internal cohesion and external confidence.

Forecast

• The court will appoint an interim management structure and begin a formal election process for a new prosecutor, which will likely extend into next year. Political pressure from non‑member states and sanctioned governments will increase, and member states critical of the ICC will use the removal as leverage to press for reforms or exits. The ICC's ability to conduct investigations into powerful or allied states will face renewed diplomatic resistance.

Bottom line

• The ICC has lost its chief prosecutor and faces a leadership vacuum during a period of intense external attack and internal division. The court will continue its cases, but its operational and political space will shrink while members negotiate a successor and contest the institution's direction.

How we got here

Allegations against Khan have been active for more than two years. Two separate investigations — by the ICCoversight body and the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services — reviewed the complaint, producing lengthy reports. Khan was suspended in June and has been barred from entering the United States after US sanctions tied to ICC warrants against Israeli officials.

Our analysis

The reporting converges on the core facts but differs in emphasis and detail. The Associated Press, quoted across multiple outlets including the New York Post and AP News, has laid out the timeline: "a saga that has dragged on for more than two years" and that the executive committee found a "serious breach of duty and serious misconduct." The BBC places heavier weight on procedural detail, noting the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services produced "more than 5,000 pages of evidence and testimony" and that an ad hoc panel of judges reviewed the findings. Al Jazeera and The New Arab emphasise the political context: Khans 2024 warrants for Israeli leaders and the US sanctions are presented as central to why the case has become so polarising, with The New Arab quoting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying Washington is "using all the tools ... to dismantle the ICC." The Times of Israel and Independent provide voting details, reporting that 82 of 125 members voted to remove Khan and that only 13 states reportedly voted to retain him. Several outlets reproduce direct statements: Paivi Kaukoranta, president of the Assembly of States Parties, described the discipline as a "complex and sensitive" matter (France 24), while Khans lawyers called the suspension "unlawful, procedurally unfair and unsupported by evidence" (BBC, Reuters excerpts echoed in multiple pieces). Venezuela's foreign minister, Flix Plasencia, is cited directly announcing withdrawal and accusing the court of "geographical bias" (AP, The Times of Israel). Read the AP for the investigative chronology and the BBC for detailed procedural reporting; read Al Jazeera and The New Arab for the geopolitical framing and reactions from affected states and advocacy groups.

Go deeper

• Who will lead the prosecutor's office while the ICC selects Khan's successor?
• How will the removal affect the ICC's investigations into Gaza and Afghanistan?
• Which other countries will consider withdrawing or changing their relationship with the ICC?

More on these topics

• International Criminal Court - Intergovernmental organization

  The International Criminal Court is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal that sits in The Hague, Netherlands.

• Benjamin Netanyahu - Prime Minister of Israel

  Benjamin Netanyahu is an Israeli politician serving as Prime Minister of Israel since 2009, and previously from 1996 to 1999. Netanyahu is also the Chairman of the Likud – National Liberal Movement.

• Yoav Gallant - Member of the Knesset

  Yoav Galant is an Israeli politician and former commander of the Southern Command in the Israel Defense Forces. In January 2015, he entered politics, joining the new Kulanu party.

• United States - Country in North America

  The United States of America, commonly known as the United States or America, is a country mostly located in central North America, between Canada and Mexico.

• Israel - Country in the Middle East

  Israel, formally known as the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia, located on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea.

• Gaza - Wikimedia disambiguation page

  Gaza most commonly refers to: Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea Gaza City, a city in the Gaza Strip Gaza may also refer to:

• United Nations - Intergovernmental organization

  The United Nations is an intergovernmental organization that aims to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations.

• Netherlands - Country in Europe

  The Netherlands, informally Holland, is a country primarily located in Western Europe and partly in the Caribbean, forming the largest constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

• Associated Press - News agency company

  The Associated Press is an American not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. Its members are U.S. newspapers and broadcasters.

• Donald Trump - 45th and 47th U.S. President

  Donald John Trump is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021.

• CNN - Television channel

  CNN is an American news-based pay television channel owned by CNN Worldwide, a unit of the WarnerMedia News & Sports division of AT&T's WarnerMedia.

• New York City - US State

  New York is a state in the Northeastern United States. New York was one of the original thirteen colonies that formed the United States. With more than 19 million residents in 2019, it is the fourth-most-populous state.

• The Hague - City in the Netherlands

  The Hague is a city on the western coast of the Netherlands on the North Sea and the capital of the province of South Holland. It is also the seat of government of the Netherlands and hosts the International Court of Justice, one of the most important cou

• Venezuela - Country in South America

  Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many small islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea.

• Marco Rubio - United States Senator

  Marco Antonio Rubio is an American attorney and politician currently serving as the senior United States Senator from Florida. A Republican, Rubio previously served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives.

• The Wall Street Journal - Newspaper

  The Wall Street Journal is an American business-focused, English-language international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese.

• Ukraine - Country in Europe

  Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which borders it to the east and northeast.

• France - Country in Europe

  France, officially the French Republic, is a country consisting of metropolitan France in Western Europe and several overseas regions and territories.

• Gaza Strip

  The Gaza Strip, or simply Gaza, is a self-governing Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, that borders Egypt on the southwest for 11 kilometers and Israel on the east and north along a 51 km border.

• Hamas

  Hamas is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist militant organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades.